Iowa announced three medical marijuana retailers that will be allowed to sell low-THC cannabis, including the only company currently allowed to cultivate the plant.
Two of the three companies plan to open a pair of dispensary locations, according to the Des Moines Register.
The winning retailers and their dispensary locations:
- MedPharm Iowa, with locations in Windsor Heights and Sioux City
- Have a Heart Compassion Care, with locations in Council Bluffs and Davenport
- Iowa Cannabis Company, with one location in Waterloo
The dispensaries must open by Dec. 1.
Seven companies filed 20 applications for the dispensary licenses, each paying $5,000 in application fees.
The Iowa Department of Public Health chose the successful applicants but did not elaborate on why the others were not chosen.
The state has no residency requirements for dispensary owners, and two of the businesses benefited.
The parent companies of Have a Heart and Iowa Cannabis Company are based in Washington state, the Register reported.
MedPharm Iowa, the only approved marijuana cultivator in Iowa, is finishing work on a $10 million grow facility near Des Moines.
State health authorities plan to license one additional cultivator, but have no deadline for doing so.
Iowa allows low-THC marijuana products for people with certain medical conditions, including cancer and chronic pain. The state currently has 316 eligible MMJ patients.
The Iowa dispensaries will not be allowed to sell smokable marijuana, and products must contain no more than 3% THC.
That threshold is 10 times higher than the federal definition of hemp but significantly lower than THC contents commonly recommended to patients in other MMJ states.
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